2012 Blackhawks Convention – Day 3 Recap

RECAP OF SUNDAY, JULY 22, 2012

On Day 3 of the Chicago Blackhawks Convention, I had to go it alone as Shellie had made plans for Sunday long before we knew that someone was giving us free passes.

I got to the convention at 8:15 AM, thinking that I could get a wristband for a Daniel Carcillo autograph. But some extreme Twilight Blackhawks fans were lining up outside of the convention (which was held at a hotel) as early as 3 AM. Even though wristband distribution was not for another 15 minutes, they had already cut off the lines for Carcillo, Brent Seabrook and Viktor Stalberg

So, I did what any sensible Blackhawks fan my age would do; I got another autograph from Michel Goulet. There were less than 100 people waiting to get a wristband for him, and he’d start signing at 9 AM, so that suited me just fine.

Instead of getting another card signed, I decided to get an 8″ x 10″ photo autographed. This one is going up on the wall at home.

One of the convention workers told me that there were still wristbands if I wanted yet another autograph from Goulet. I was tempted, but I decided instead to get a wristband for 3 former ‘Hawks who’d be signing at the same table together later that day: Pierre Pilote, Eric Nesterenko and Ab McDonald.

I got 1968-69 O-Pee-Chee cards signed by McDonald and Nesterenko.

I also got a stick blade signed by Pilote for my dealer friend–I wouldn’t be at the show without her generosity, and she loves Hall of Fame players.

Some things I bought on Sunday:

The Convention only went until 1 PM on Sunday, and there were not many players signing. Between autograph sessions, I was able to pick up a few things I wanted. This autographed 1990-91 Pro Set card of Stan Mikita cost me $15. I heard that Mikita–while he attends conventions and such–does not sign as often as he used to.

Starting Lineup “Pro Action” figures of Jaromir Jagr and Joe Sakic. I still need a few of these, and actually did not know that they made a Pro Action figure of Jagr.

An 8″ x 10″ photograph of Frantisek Kucera. Because every hockey collection needs an 8″ x 10 photograph of Frantisek Kucera–especially if it is only $1.

A few team photos, including this 1933-34 Chicago Blackhawks team photo. That was the first year they won the Stanley Cup.

I also picked up a few signed insert autographed cards from the 1990s, which I will eventually post on my other blog.

Final Thoughts

The Blackhawks organization actually gave fans enough things to do. There were usually 4 “regular” autograph lines, 2 “VIP” autograph lines, 1 photo line and 2 panel discussions going on at the same time. There were a lot of people, but it didn’t feel crowded because we were spread out enough and our attention was diverted.

Autographs of current players and up-and-coming players were in greater demand than players from the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. People “camping out” for autographs of guys like Brent Seabrook and Andrew Shaw made it relatively easy for me to get ‘graphs from guys like Stu Grimson, Michel Goulet (twice) and Dave Manson. Thus, I had an absolute field day and ended up with 21 in-person autographs for my collection.

Like previous years, there were not that many dealers, but there was enough variety. The more I dug around the more I found cool things for my collection.

Overall, I had a great time. Yes, our passes were free. But even if I paid for them, I still would have had fun.